So I've been sick since Thursday. It started with a throat tickle that progressed to a cough, head cold, and fever for Friday and Saturday. On Saturday, I used up an entire box of tissues because my nose was like a faucet. By Sunday, the fever was gone, which was good because I had to be at work for Open House (I decided that future tenure was more important than current health). Today, I'm still stuffy with a bit of a cough and energy levels are low. The biggest problem is that I just can't concentrate, which means lectures aren't getting written and papers aren't being graded and I'm falling farther and farther behind. Wee!! Thank god two of my classes tomorrow are taking exams (although that does add more to the grading pile.).



Was my sickness swine flu? My non-medical opinion is probably. At its worst I was up to 6 of 8 symptoms for swine flu and most websites said you only needed two or three to be a likely candidate. Although without official tests from a doctor, who knows what I have.



But this brings me to my theory (again I stress totally non-medical). Since getting sick, my eczema as vanished. Typically, I use a steroid cream on my legs every two to three days. If I go more than three days, the itchies start and quickly the bumps. Steroids are my friend. But since getting sick, I haven't used the cream. AND I've been taking wicked hot showers (a big no no for eczema) because it helps me to breathe for at least 10 minutes, and still no itchies.



So my eczema theory is that 99% of the time my immune system is bored. Because it is bored and has nothing to do, it attacks my skin causing the itchies, bumps, and much worse if I don't beat it down with steroids. But now that my immune system has something legitimate to fight, there is no need for the random attacks against the skin.



What to do with this theory... I don't know... All I do know is that I want to be able to stop breathing through my mouth!!!!